S. Florida Congressmen Forecast Clearer Sailing

February 13, 1999|By RAFAEL LORENTE Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON — Two months after they squared off in a historic debate that ended with the impeachment of President Clinton, South Florida's House members predicted peaceful, productive times ahead as the White House and Congress rush to show that Washington is still relevant to the average American.

But some members warned that a year of partisan bickering over sex, lies and videotape could have lasting consequences for the nation's criminal justice system and the ability to investigate future presidents for misconduct. Rep. Mark Foley, R-West Palm Beach, said a Democratic president desperate to leave a positive legacy and a Republican Congress eager to prove it is about more than impeachment could be a recipe for legislative action. "There's going to be a dramatic alliance," Foley said.

Rep. E. Clay Shaw Jr., R-Fort Lauderdale, a leader in his party's effort to reform Social Security, said Clinton has to work with Republicans.

"He's never going to serve under a Democratic Congress, so he needs to work with Republicans to get something done," Shaw said.

Social Security, Medicare and a "patient's bill of rights" all are expected to be priorities during this year's session. Clinton's proposal to set aside 62 percent of the federal budget surplus to save Social Security has been accepted by Republicans. Details of a plan will be more difficult to work out, though, with the two sides divided on issues such as whether and how to invest Social Security money in the stock market.

Rep. Peter Deutsch, D-Fort Lauderdale, said bipartisan work on issues such as Social Security would show that Congress learned from the impeachment battle.

"In every disaster, there's opportunity," Deutsch said. "As bad as things are, you can turn a curse into a blessing." But if Clinton deals too closely with Republicans, he may anger allies who fought hard to keep him in office. Many House Democrats are not eager to see their Republican colleagues take credit for any accomplishments.

Many Democrats think they can use the public's distaste for the impeachment proceedings as a weapon to take the House back from Republicans in 2000.

Fearful of having the public turn against his party, though, House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-Mo., has asked Democrats not to stand in the way of good legislation.

One piece of legislation that both sides agree will not pass is the renewal of the independent counsel law.

The independent counsel law was established in the aftermath of President Nixon's resignation so attorneys general who report to presidents would not have to oversee investigations of their bosses.

The need for such a law became obvious in 1973 when Nixon, in an attempt to stop investigations of his presidency, had Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox fired in what came to be known as the Saturday Night Massacre. But the bitter battle caused by Kenneth Starr's investigation practically guarantees that the law will not be renewed when it comes up later this year, said Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Boca Raton, said.

Wexler, who last year tried to modify the law, now says it must be eliminated because it gives one person too much power.

But there will be more than political consequences to Clinton's impeachment and acquittal, said Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, R-Miami, said. In civil and criminal courts, witnesses may feel emboldened to skirt the truth the way Clinton admits to having done in his depositions, Diaz-Balart said.

"This is going to have a very definite effect on the criminal and civil justice system in the United States," Diaz-Balart said. "The justice system in this country is based on telling the truth."

Not surprisingly, Wexler and Deutsch, who joined Democrats Alcee Hastings of Miramar and Carrie Meek of Miami in voting against impeachment, disagreed with their Republican colleagues about whether the House should have even voted on the articles.

"I certainly don't believe this was worth going through," Wexler said. Shaw, who voted to impeach along with Republicans Diaz-Balart, Foley and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Miami, said Clinton brought the scandal on himself.

But while the president, Congress and the media may have been tarnished by the tawdry series of events, Shaw said the trial provided an ultimate lesson.